Custer State Park to host national orienteering meet

I have to admit that the first thing about this event that caught my eye was the word "Rogaining" in its title. After I read about it, I saw that it is an attempt to build on the success of last year’s Primal Quest Badlands event with another backcountry competition.

Following is the news release from the state Department of Game, Fish and Parks (after reading it, I still don’t know why the organizers of this event chose an acronym that spells out the name of a men’s hair regrowth product; maybe the acronym came first, before the product).

CUSTER STATE PARK, S.D. – On May 8 and 9, the inaugural Dakota Rogaining Championships will be held in Custer State Park.

A Rogaine is a long-distance, cross-country navigation race for teams traveling on foot by map and compass.

The term “Rogaine” stands for Rugged Outdoor Group Activity Involving Navigation and Endurance. The object is to score points by finding orienteering flags placed in the backcountry within a specified time frame. The course itself is not revealed until shortly before the race starts.

The event, sanctioned by the United States Orienteering Federation, is open to the public and a great way to introduce people to orienteering. Activities include a four-hour short course for beginners and juniors, a 12-in-24 hour intermediate race, and the 24-hour championship.

Teams consist of two to five members, and USOF rules of competition will apply. Teams are divided into categories of men, women, and mixed. In each category there are divisions by age – junior, open, veteran, and super veteran.

The 2010 Rogaine event follows last year’s successful Primal Quest Badlands, and shows the continued interest in outdoor recreation in western South Dakota.

Custer State Park has been chosen to host the inaugural event.

“Custer State Park is a good fit for this type of event,” said Park Superintendent Richard Miller. “With mountains, plains, lakes and streams, I think the park’s variety will add to the challenge.”

Miller is excited for the junior division in particular. “We welcome any opportunity for new generations to explore Custer State Park.”

The event coincides with Game, Fish and Parks’ Children in Nature initiative aimed at getting children outdoors.

Visit www.peakassurance.net to learn more about racing or volunteering for the Dakota Rogaining Championships.

About Author

Seth Tupper was born and raised in South Dakota and earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from South Dakota State University in 2001. After college, he worked at a newspaper in Minnesota and then returned to South Dakota in 2003 to join the staff of The Daily Republic in Mitchell, where he is currently the publisher. Seth has won numerous awards for his writing, including the 2007 Outstanding Young Journalist award in the daily newspapers category of the South Dakota Newspaper Association’s Better Newspapers Contest. Seth’s day-job and freelance work have granted him opportunities to meet hundreds of South Dakotans and travel across much of the state. He also spends a lot of his free time exploring South Dakota’s state and national parks, hiking trails and kayak-friendly rivers.

About Us

The state of South Dakota is renowned for its rolling hills, fertile farm country, and sweeping plains bisected by scenic lakes and streams. Its many major national attractions— Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Memorial, the Black Hills, and Badlands National Park, to name a few—make South Dakota the destination of a steady stream of tourists each year.

Outdoor enthusiasts enjoy the breathtaking scenery and history of Custer State Park, Wind Cave National Park, Bear Butte State Park, Palisades, and other wilderness preserves.